Russia’s Transportation Ministry expects to build a toll road linking Moscow with the city of Kazan by 2027, three years after its original planned completion date, the Vedomosti business daily has reported.
Finance Minister Anton Siluanov last week authorized the Transportation Ministry to start building two sections of the Moscow-Kazan highway. The toll road is part of Russia’s multibillion-dollar infrastructure revitalization plan, which includes developing strategic routes such as the Europe-western China transport corridor.
The Moscow-Kazan highway will be built by 2027, an unnamed Transportation Ministry official told Vedomosti on Tuesday. Two outlying sections of the road are expected to be built by 2024.
The official said the project’s budget has been cut from 539 billion rubles ($8.5 billion) to 250 billion rubles ($3.9 billion). Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has final say on the plan.
The Russian government is pursuing a 6.3 trillion ruble ($96 billion) six-year modernization plan to revamp the country’s highways, airports, railways, ports and other transport infrastructure through 2024.